Bolivian Coca in Coca Cola

Having solved all other problems affecting Bolivia, a commission of coca farmers advising the assembly in charge of re-writing Bolivia’s constitution is asking the Coca Cola company to drop the word coca from its world-famous products. I would settle for an acknowledgement that coca is one of the ingredients of the popular soft drink, but then again I’m not as ambitious as these fellows.

March 20 Addendum: I finally found a New York Times article I remember reading a few years ago. The article is called New Peruvian Soft Drink Packs a Punch. It discusses the use of coca by Peruvian soft drink companies but, more importantly, mentions that the Coca-Cola company buys a cocaine free extract from the Stepan Company, one of the few American companies legally allowed to handle coca in the US.

So there you have it. Even though Coca-Cola will not acknowledge it officially, it seems clear to me that coca is an ingredient of the most popular soft drink in the world.